The grant will support Hispanic youth by providing resources needed to succeed academically, professionally and economically.

Dec. 11, 2018 - LANSING, Mich.—The Michigan Hispanic Collaborative (MIHC) in Ann Arbor, Michigan was awarded a Michigan College Access Network (MCAN) Innovative Program Grant. This $10,000 award will be used to support Hispanic youth (ages 16-24) as they navigate from high school to college and careers. The comprehensive program, called “La Próxima Generación” (which translates to "the next generation"), aims to advance students socio-economically.

According to the Michigan Hispanic Collaborative, “Hispanics today comprise 17 percent of the U.S. population and are projected to be 31 percent by 2050. Despite these powerful numbers, the Hispanic community remains undereducated, underemployed and underrepresented. Without focused and strategic intervention, the Hispanic youth, remain at risk. Nationally, only 67 percent of Hispanics finish high school and only 16 percent finish college.”

“This grant creates a targeted model that supports cohorts of Hispanic youth through engaged mentoring and networking,” said Brandy Johnson, executive director of the Michigan College Access Network. “This program aligns with MCAN’s focus on college access, readiness and completion for students of color. Regardless of ZIP code or ethnicity, all of Michigan’s students should understand they are college material.”

MIHC will work to bring together partner schools, businesses, industry, nonprofits, community leaders, and elected officials whose important efforts when harnessed can improve Hispanic economic mobility. The MIHC will identify gaps in services, partner to streamline efforts, leverage existing platforms, spot redundant processes and work to design innovative programming that maximizes Hispanic high school student and postsecondary academic and professional success.

Innovative Program Grants are designed to fund programming that increases college readiness, enrollment, and completion in local communities and across the state through grants of up to $10,000. Since these grants were introduced in 2016, MCAN has awarded more than $266,000 in 29 different Innovative Program Grants to organizations throughout the state.

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ABOUT THE MICHIGAN COLLEGE ACCESS NETWORK (MCAN)

As the leader in the state’s college access movement, MCAN’s mission is to increase Michigan’s college readiness, participation and completion rates, particularly among low-income students, first-generation college going students, and students of color. For the seventh year in a row, Michigan’s postsecondary educational attainment rate has increased — from 35.7 percent of 25-to-64-year-olds possessing at least an associate degree in 2008, to 39.4 percent in 2016. Additionally, it is estimated another 4 percent of Michiganders have a high-quality certificate, bringing Michigan’s official attainment rate to 43.7 percent as of 2018. It is MCAN’s goal to increase Michigan’s postsecondary educational attainment rate to 60 percent by the year 2025. For more information, visit micollegeaccess.org.

ABOUT THE MICHIGAN HISPANIC COLLABORATIVE (MIHC)

The Michigan Hispanic Collaborative (MIHC) was created in September 2018 by a group of Hispanic leaders in Southeast Michigan. This group includes leaders from the Michigan House of Representatives, KPMG, DTE Energy, General Motors, among many other entities. The goal of the group was to create a high-level plan to improve the economic strength of the Hispanic community. For more information, visit michiganhispaniccollaborative.com